Summerfest!!!

Summerfest was a blast this year, and Rafal of Seville Media even captured some of it on film. Here are the only two pics where I don't look like an angry oaf:

Me and Beth at a jewelry booth, she's got a lucky buddha or gargoyle or something:



Beth, me, and Kim having something to eat.

AE Peep-toe Flats: What to wear them with?

So I got these shoes >>> from Payless (which has quite a few cute styles now that they have paired with American Eagle, etc) but I haven't been able to successfully pair them with anything in my closet. They just don't look right. They should be cute with jeans but I think I'm still in summer mode so my mind immediately goes to another shoe, a sandal or flipflop that would look cuter. They look wrong with a skirt too, because I need a little heel to make a skirt right.

I had intentions on pairing this purply shade with a coral, or maybe green ... Definitely not purple, though. I don't dig matchy-matchy.

I think I'm going to try them with cropped pants today. Wish me luck.

How I think my sister should wear her skinny jeans in Paris ...

Oh, tapered jean, how I remember you from the 80's as the IT thing to wear. Even if you had to 'tight-roll' regular jeans, they had to be skinny. Pretty soon that look extended to the other end of the spectrum -- into the big bell-bottom and wide flares, and I was so grateful, since that style did nothing for me.

Now that the skinny jean look has come back my sister Kim is going to try this trend with a pair she picked up at Forever 21. She's debuting the look in Paris this month!

Here are some ways I think would work for my sister's petite, skinny frame:


With a tunic, a la Anne Hathaway -- I like the look of a lot on top and a little on the bottom. However, I think the wedges should go in favor of a cute flat.



Although it will probably be warm in Paris in the middle of August, I like the long cardigan over skinny jeans. These are more like straights, but you get the idea.



I love how Vanessa Hudgens makes it look so easy! Kim could pair her skinnies with lots of easy lights, whites, and grays, with a splash of color in her bag or a flowy scarf as shown here.

However she styles the skinnies, I'm sure they will look extra-cute!

Mid-Summer Closet Cleanout

Last night I sorted through my closet. Actually, I went through the pile of clean clothes that had accumulated near my bed, and I needed room to hang the stuff in my closet so I had to throw some things out. Here's the list of things I said goodbye to, partly in reaction to this article by Allie of Wardrobe Oxygen:

• 3 cheap polyester skirts
  
• a yellow pattern dress that was an unflattering material and hit at just the wrong part of my leg
  
• a black sheath dress that didn't fit quite right and never will
  
• 2 cheaply made long sleeve shrugs
  
• a silk pink camisole that looks like lingerie no matter what I pair it with
  
• a skort that should only be worn by a 14 year old
  
• a gray A-line skirt that is a miniskirt on me (got it from goodwill, giving it back to goodwill)
  

And some other miscellaneous stuff.

It's hard to part with clothing because I always feel like the more options I have the easier it is to get dressed. But it's harder. I seem to fall back on the same staples anyway. I didn't realize I have about 10 pairs of jeans because I wear the same 3 constantly (and two are a duplicate - if you find something you love buy two).

I am trying not to buy any more summer clothes or shoes. I know I will need stuff for fall/winter so I can wait until then to spend any more money ...

Wakey Wakey

I got up at 6 am today. I could have gotten ready and gone to work early so I wouldn't have to stay past 4 (I can never fully concentrate after 4pm) but there are two reasons why I cannot do this and must wait to leave until 8.

1. I carpool. Every morning my coworker Kate comes to my house and we leave from there. We trade off weeks, one week I drive, one week she drives. It saves a lot of money on gas but unfortch I have to wait until 8 am for her to arrive before we can go. Obviously.

2. The teenager lives with us now. He has a regimented schedule which his father worked out perfectly to allow me and him adequate bathroom time. Sucky part is if I get up any earlier than 7am and have to pee I am forced to hold it until the door opens. Sure I could knock but I can usually wait an extra few minutes. Anyways there is no way I could access the bathroom between 6am and 7am (yes the boy takes an hour in there I wonder what takes so long).

So I must stay on my schedule and push through that last dreadful hour at my desk, gorgeous afternoon weather + sleepy afternoon naptime or not.

***But the crazy thing was even though I got up at 6am today I did not get in the shower until 7:40 and I was still ready on time. How did I do that AND switch outfits three times, you ask???

I have no idea.

This is a ridiculous blog post.

Out of Body Experience

Last night I had a crazy dream ....

I wanted to get something pierced, but I was too afraid to go by myself. So I asked my friend Holly if she would take me. I knew Holly could handle it; she's had tattoos before and she's pretty bold. So while she took me to get pierced, I went off and did my own thing for a while. <--- Yeah, she literally took my body into the piercing shop, so that she experienced the pain and not me, and I didn't feel a thing! Crazy, I know. It's a dream, remember!

A few hours later when she returned my body to me I noticed that my lower lip was pierced on both sides. It was pretty cool, I must admit. I couldn't stop checking myself out in the mirror. I'm so edgy, I kept thinking. I then wondered what else was pierced and asked Tom to check out my new look. He said that the back of my neck was pierced, which I thought was really cool. Then I lifted my shirt and found my whole back was pierced with big, giant barbell needles! All the way down my spine - I looked fierce! I was also told that *ahem* some other places were *cough* pierced too, if you know what I mean. But I didn't feel any pain, just a little discomfort from getting used to my own skin again. I thanked Holly for going through it for me.

Then, with a twisted tinge of buyers remorse, I started to wonder if my new look was going to go with my wardrobe ...

Poll - Spring Shoes